Dr. Paola Agostini is a Senior Economist in the World Bank’s Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice with a focus on Africa and Latin America. She is currently the GEF (Global Environment Facility) coordinator for projects which address Biodiversity, Climate Change, Land Degradation, Sustainable Forest Management, International Water and Chemicals using a landscape approach.

Paola Agostini also coordinates TerrAfrica, a regional  partnership program in over 24 Sub-Saharan countries that promotes Sustainable Land and Water Management to help reduce poverty, improve livelihoods, and encourage resilient landscapes development. Additionally, she coordinates the REDD+ Program in Africa (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) supported by the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, the Forest Investment Program and the BioCarbon Fund.  REDD+ fosters conservation, sustainable management of forests, community forestry and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

As an Economist, in the Latin America Department of the World Bank, Ms. Agostini worked primarily on rural development issues looking at the interface between agriculture, environment and social issues. Paola Agostini holds a PhD in Economics from the University of California San Diego, and a Master of Art in Social Sciences from Universita Bocconi, Milan, Italy.